Eternal Bond
by Morningtheft
Summary: Bonds are strange things, we form them, strengthen them and sometime break them. But some bonds we are born with, some bonds cannot be broken, some link us in ways we don't entirely understand...
1. Prologue

**A/N:** This is a preview/prologue to my upcoming story 'eternal bond' - more details to come and I won't tell you more about it, it's a surprise :P

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_Prologue: Most Important Person_

_Umino Iruka walked slowly up one of the staircases that ran between the desks of his academy classroom. He smiled lightly at the unusual silence that had fallen on his class, the usually loud and energetic children absorbed in their tasks as the sound of pencils scratching filled the air._

_Children's behaviour fascinated Iruka; if he set them work they would talk idly and it wouldn't get done, teach them from the board and they passed notes, set them a test and they would sneak out. But give them a simple drawing exercise…_

_Iruka had decided that, as parents evening was coming up, he should produce a display for the parents to see when they visited. To this end he had asked the children to draw a picture, a picture of their most important person. Walking among the desks as he was he saw the same things repeated; mums, dads, brothers, sister, aunts, uncles, grandparents..._

_Iruka stopped behind his favourite pupil, though he could never admit it, he was curious as to what the six year old blonde boy would draw, maybe the Hokage? Or dare Iruka be so presumptuous, himself?_

_Looking over his shoulder Iruka took in the image the boy had drawn, a pretty young girl appearing to be the same age as the children of his class, smooth and long black hair to her shoulder blades that hung around her face and wonderfully green eyes._

_There where two things that struck Iruka about this image, firstly the hidden drawing talent Naruto possessed, the drawing could well be a hobbyists or semi-pro's. Secondly he did not recognise the girl, crouching to take a better look and bringing himself to the boys level he turned to Naruto and asked quietly, "Whose this Naruto? I don't recognise her."_

_Naruto didn't look away from his picture as he applied some dark blue to the girls dress using a broken pencil that looked suspiciously like one Iruka had thrown out a few days ago. "Natsuki." Naruto responded, sticking his tongue out of the corner of his mouth in the manner children do while concentrating._

"_Natsuki?" Iruka asked, "I haven't heard of her, is she local?"_

"_I don't know." Naruto replied._

"_Well," Iruka asked, "Where did you meet her?"_

_Naruto frowned slightly, whether from concentration or confusion Iruka didn't know, "I'm not sure."_

"_Well how do you know her?" Iruka pressed._

"_I just do, always have, I can sense her."_


	2. Second prologue: In Mirrored Hearts

_-Second Prologue: In Mirrored Hearts Distance Shackles None.-_

_- Hokage's office, seven years post Kyuubi's attack._

_Sarutobi was getting old, he had seen and done more than many a man his age and regretted little of it. Sitting and smiling on his knee, however, was the source of many of the mans regrets; Uzumaki Naruto._

"_And then the bucket fell off the roof soaking Kiba!" Sarutibi smiled, the innocent grin of the child on his lap was infectious, trying to resist was like swimming through one of Jiraiya's summoned swamps._

"_Well now, you wouldn't have had anything to do with the bucket being directly over Kiba's head or falling at exactly the right moment would you?"_

_Sarutobi's voice was neither accusatory nor chiding but the small boy still looked a little sheepish, the Hokage smiled again, "Well I guess I should punish you then!" he declared with a smile._

_The sight to anyone who entered the office would have been… unusual, afterall it was not everyday that you see the villages highest ranking official chasing a giggling boy round the room with threats of 'I'll tickle you good!' – well not unless you're catholic._

_Just as he started his second lap Naruto stopped and suddenly grabbed his right knee, sensing something was wrong Sarutobi stopped playing and ran straight to the boys side._

"_Naruto are you ok?" He asked gently, "Did you hurt your knee?"_

_Naruto shook his head, "No," he replied, "I didn't, she did."_

"_She?" Sarutobi asked quietly._

_- Snow Country, Outside St. Anne's Orphanage._

"_Natsuki!" Came a cry as one of the Nun's ran to a crying child's side, "Natsuki are you ok?"_

_The girl sobbed slightly, "I… I hit my knee."_

_The nun inspected the girls knee carefully, "Well now it doesn't look to bad, come with me and we'll put some ice on it."_

_The girl shook her head violently, "Ice is bad! Ice hurt me!"_

_The nun smiled, "Well if you had listened and not run around on the pond it wouldn't have happened would it? So is it the Ice's fault you hurt yourself?"_

_She shook her head as the nun led her into the orphanage, "Ok then… how about we get you a bath to warm you up – after all you have to look your best for the palace guards tomorrow."_

"_Guards?" The small girl asked._

"_Yes, they're coming to select attendants for the princess."_

"_A real princess?"_

_The nun chuckled, "Yes a __**real**__ princess, do you want to be one of her attendants?"_

_Natsuki shook her head, "I wanna be a doctor!"_

_The nun smiled sadly, it was not the first time the girl had told her this, she didn't want to be the one to kill the girls' dreams but becoming a doctor was expensive. The only way for an orphan to become a doctor in snow country was for them to train as a Shinobi and become a med-nin. Sadly this line wasn't open to Natsuki as girls where 'weak' and would only be taken from proven lines – therefore; no orphans. Becoming an attendant was really the best future the girl could hope for._

"_Well I don't know about that but wouldn't you like to work for the princess? She's very beautiful and only a few years older than you!"_

_The girl scrunched up her face, "Maybe…"_

'_Well at least that's a start' The sister thought to herself._

_-In Mirrored Hearts Distance Shackles None.-_

_- Snow country: Princess Yuki's chambers, ten years post Kyuubi's attack_

"_Your tea Yuki-samma."_

"_Thank you… you know I shall miss you while I travel Natsuki."_

"_You flatter me Yuki-samma."_

"_Not at all, after all I know who it was that painted all the guards armour pink." The princess eyes glittered and her attendant blushed._

"_I do not know what you mean Yuki-samma."_

"_I'm sure you don't… Are my bags packed? I received word that my Carriage is prepared and would like to set off by the morning."_

"_Yes Yuki-samma, Both summer and winter weight clothes along with finances for an extended journey of up to five years, may I ask where…" The attendant stopped suddenly bending over in pain._

"_Natsuki!" Yuki called out, "Are you alright?"_

_Yuki looked on in horror as the girl straightened out sweating and obviously in a great deal of pain, "It's alright," She said, "Help arrived."_

_- Konoha, a back alley._

"_YOU BETTER RUN!" screamed a purple haired Jounin at the assembled crowed as they tried to put distance between themselves and her snakes._

_She sighed as she saw the state of the boy on the ground behind her, he looked a little the worse for wear but otherwise ok – he was just lucky she was walking by._

"_You ok kid?"_

_Naruto nodded, "Come on," Anko said, "I'll drop you off at the hospital before I see the old man."_

_-In Mirrored Hearts Distance Shackles None.-_

_Snow Country, Princess Yuki's chambers – 13 years post Kyuubi attack._

_Princess Yuki watched the film idly making notes on her own performance, she tutted occasionally and wrote something else down or smiled when she performed particularly well. She was never a fan of watching herself act but things had changed recently and she needed to make sure she was ready for the next film in the series – after all it started filming in a little over two months. She was sad to leave her country again after leaving for so long but at least this time it would only be four six months._

_She smiled slightly as an action scene began; Naruto and his team-mates fighting near the train… that was how long ago now? She couldn't remember, it had been many months but certainly under a year._

"_Yuki-sama, I have brought your tea." Came a gentle voice from beside her._

"_Thank you." She replied turning to the young girl, the girls' attention was else ware though, riveted to the television on which Yuki had been watching her performance._

_Yuki was about to ask her attendant if she was all right when a single phrase slipped the girls' lips, "Naruto… You're real."_


End file.
